I have been a quote collector and quote monger for at least as long as I've been an atheist and probably a good deal longer. My admiration for those who enjoy reputations as wordsmiths extends even further back, whether we're talking about John F. Kennedy's assertion: "We choose to go to the moon," George Santayana's warning: "Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it," or James T. Kirk's deft observation when faced with the dauntingly huge First Federation ship: "Not chess, Mr. Spock ... poker!"

The realm of atheist activism has had its own share of verbal craftsmen and women, from Madalyn Murray O'Hair's: "An atheist believes that a hospital should be built instead of a church." to Aron Ra's succinct: "If you can't show it, you don't know it."

Regardless of the topic, these are words which are capable of fomenting inspiration, reflection, and sometimes even action. They can educate and illuminate the human condition and allow us to better know ourselves. That said, here is an open invitation to share those words which have been particularly meaningful or impactful or timely or just special to you for one reason or another.

Let's share those words and have fun!

One bit of clerical business: please hold your quotes in the comment area below to 20 lines or 200 words. One comment should not so dominate the Home page of this group that no other comment is visible. That way, the briefer comments and quotes of all participants are more likely to be seen, read, and appreciated. If you have a long quote or commentary, create a post, please.

Discussion Forum

The word “Permaculture” is the combination of the two words “permanent” and “agriculture.” It is a method of agricultural philosophy that allows gardeners to create and sustain growing food in a way…Continue

On 31 May, 2018, Joan Denoo posted a most excellent quote from David Hume: That quote was well deserving of a response, which is the following:The most preposterous notion that H. sapiens has ever…Continue

Aaron Sorkin has a habit of swinging for the fences when he writes political commentary as entertainment for television. This was first evinced in the network television series, The West Wing, and…Continue

Robert Green Ingersoll (1833-1899)"When I became convinced that the universe is natural, that all the ghosts and gods are myths, there entered into my brain, into my soul, into every drop of my blood…Continue

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Babylon 5 was the last of the Babylon stations. There would never be another. It changed the future and it changed us. It taught us that we have to create the future, or others will do it for us. It showed us that we have to care for one another because if we don’t, who will. And that true strength sometimes comes from the most unlikely places. Mostly, though, I think it gave us hope that there could always be new beginnings, even for people like us. -- General Susan Ivanova, Babylon 5, "Sleeping in Light"

I originally posted this quote along with observations about the series finale of Babylon 5 a long time ago, because I so admired that capstone to the series, even as I honor J. Michael Straczynski and what he accomplished with it. Michael managed to cram a lot of content and thought into B5, and it shows, even through some of the unevenness of the first and last seasons. As surely as I am invested in Kirk and Spock and McCoy and the crew of the Starship Enterprise, I am equally invested in Sinclair and Sheridan and Ivanova, in Delenn and Lennier, G'Kar and Mollari and all of the beings who made that interstellar port of call what it was.

Ambassador Delenn of the Mimbari, as with the other denizens of space station Babylon 5, is the invention of J. Michael Straczynski. He created Babylon 5 as a "novel for television" in a five-year arc, totaling 110 episodes. It is considered by many science-fiction aficionados to be among the finest of such works for the small screen.

Delenn herself, played so wonderfully by Mira Furlan, is a strong and beautiful woman, sometimes enigmatic, but always herself. We get to see many sides of her during the five seasons of Babylon 5, her philosophical bent and a warrior's heart which may seem out of place for one of Mimbar's religious caste. In all her aspects, I find her as I do many of the characters of B5, utterly unforgettable.

The thing is, Delenn before her transition and after remains the same person. She always dealt with hard truths and did so unblinkingly. She made mistakes at times and was honest enough to admit it when she did. And every morning after her husband's disappearance, she honors her love by being witness to the sunrise over Tuzanor.

Joan, I'll trust a process when the process is willing to trust me when I deviate from it. A brilliant jazz saxophonist by the name of Eric Kloss once told me that he saw jazz as this:

"Freedom in structure; structure in freedom."

I think the same may be said for how to live one's life. As for "breaking away," if that hadn't been an option, Joan, you and I both would STILL be in intolerable marriages. We're not, because we were willing to scare others and not worry that we scared them. We broke those chains, and we're the better for it.

Born into a culture, we learn the norms early and without question. It isn't until the rebellious stages of 2-years old, 7-7-years, "Adolescence is a period of turmoil, where limits are being tested and risks taken."

Yes, we are slaves, until doubt, questions, and stress creates an environment of feeling test the confines of our learnings and the natural instinct to explore increases as one matures. During these natural stages of development, one reaches beyond the traditional and seeks out a new normal. For the 2-year old, it is going where he and she had never gone, alone, before. For the adolescent, hormones begin their ravaging of customs, powerful feelings, often forbidden thoughts, and behaviors win out over parental and cultural norms.

voilà, unplanned and unwanted pregnancies occur.

The job of the parent is to be a guide and safety net, and not a restraining net.

We are all slaves to our histories. If there is to be a ... bright future, we must learn to break those chains. -- Ambassador Delenn, Babylon 5, "GROPOS"

I wonder if it's so much histories that we are slaves to as it is the habits recorded in those histories. In any case, if we can't learn to "think anew and act anew" as Lincoln suggested, those chains Delenn mentioned will never be broken.